Central Michigan student kills parents with father’s gun

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Students of Central Michigan University were ready to leave to head off to a relaxing nine-day Spring Break this past week. The parents of James Eric Davis were getting ready to pick up their son after he was admitted into the hospital where he was checked for erratic behavior.

Around 8:30 a.m. Friday morning in Davis’ fourth-floor dorm room where his parents were packing his belongings, the youth shot his parents.

Davis Jr., 19, arrested early Saturday morning

Thursday, Police said Davis, 19, ran into the office of dorm police and said he believed someone wanted to kill him. Officer Yeagley said, “Mr. Davis was very vague, and he kept talking about somebody had a gun.” Police called the parents and told them that their son was acting strangely.

Before Davis arrived in the office, he had just gotten off the elevator. Police looked at surveillance videos in the elevator and saw that him and the other person were getting along and laughing together. In the office, the officers asked how they could help to make him feel safe.

The chief said Davis responded, “I’m fine. I’m going home in the morning. So, I’ll be good.”

Early Friday morning around 1:15 a.m., officers saw Davis again but with suitcases and bags. Yeagley said that the officers suspected drugs were involved because he seemed nonsensical. The officers then called his parents and took him to the local hospital.

Yeagley said he was unsure what the hospital staff determined what was connected to his behavior.

Later that morning, Davis’ parents brought him back to his dorm to pack up all his belongings to get home.

The shooting disrupted the university that Friday.

At around 8:30 a.m. Friday morning, police said the student shot and killed parents James Eric Davis, 48, Diva Jeenen Davis, 47, and a police officer in his fourth-floor dorm room. His parents were packing up his belongings to go back to their Chicago-area home.

Yeagley said that it was unclear how David Jr. obtained the gun because it was registered to his father.

Investigators believe that the young teen had brought the gun up to his dorm, Campbell Hall, where his parents were from citing a witness and video.

After the shooting occurred, Davis fled and it took police 16 hours to find Davis.

He was found Saturday morning near train tracks on the fringes of the Mount Pleasant campus at about 12:15 a.m. after a train operator reported seeing someone. When he was found, he appeared to be hypothermic and nonsensical, so he had to return to the hospital. He was arrested and taken into police custody on suspicion of killing his parents.

At a conference Saturday morning Yeagley said, “What we know for sure is that the gun was registered to his father, and that we saw… (Davis Jr.) came from the parking lot into our residence hall with the gun, and the father was upstairs at that time.”

Campus was locked down and the university told students to stay in campus buildings until they were told it was clear to leave Friday morning and afternoon. People entering campus to pick up students were directed to a campus-area hotel until further directed.

The university’s men’s basketball team had a home game Friday against Western Michigan University. The Mid-American Conference said the game was rescheduled to be held at a neutral site, Northwood University, Saturday morning where only family members were allowed.